Week 6 Flashcards
what are the 2 types of verbs?
lexical verbs and auxiliary verbs
what are 2 characteristics of lexical verbs?
open class
no inversion with subject in yes/no question
what are 2 characteristics of auxiliary verbs?
closed class (primary aux and modals)
inversion with subject in yes/no question
what is the order of auxiliary verbs in a sentence?
modal > perfect > progressive > passive
what does the perfect express?
a completed aspect of an event
what does the progressive express?
the ongoing event of an event
can the perfect and progressive be used simultaneously?
yes, it then expresses the completed part of an ongoing event
–> Tom had been working for two hours
what is the function of passive be?
alternation from active sentence in which an NP object is promoted to subject position. The subject is relegated to an optional adjunct by-phrase
what does the first verb in a sequence agree with?
the first verb in a sequence agrees with person and number with subject
what are modals always?
modals are always inflected for tense, but the do not show agreement with the subject
what is tense?
tense refers to morphological marking (inflection) relating to time on verbs, only for present and past
what are 2 ways of making references to the future?
- modal ‘will’
- present, progressive
what are finite verbs?
verbs that are tensed
what are non-finite verbs?
verbs that are not tensed
what is ‘do-so’ substitution in VP structures?
‘do-so’ substitution replaces VP containing lexical verbs but not auxiliary verbs. ‘do-so’ substitution changes with tense
